Morikiyo swiftly angled himself through the rafters of the building, nothing but the slightest creaks of the boards betraying his presence there. His partner followed behind him, the Toxicroak mirroring his movements, only placing its weight where its Master had already proven safe. Once Morikiyo reached a wall that separated him from the next room, he carefully lowered himself, only allowing his dark hair to show through the ceiling.

He glanced around the ornate hall, a thing of splendor. Rich purple and black carpets ran from the entrance to a throne crowned by a roaring maw of a dragon, a powerful display of wealth. Similarly colored tapestries lined the walls, emblazoned with the symbol of the kingdom. Orbs of yellow, red, blue, green, and pale light were placed at regular intervals, fading into one color only to quickly shift to the next.

Sitting upon the throne was the target of Morikiyo's mission. A man dressed in clothes matching the colors of the royal room was listening to the report of one of Morikiyo's fellows. A ninja, this one covering his face in a mask, kneeled before the throne.

"We were unable to locate her. She must have slipped through the guards' watch as the sun set. You have our utmost apologies, Lord Nobunaga." The kneeling man said, without a trace of emotion entering his voice.

Lord Nobunaga, for this man could be no other, simply laughed in response. "If she thinks she can stop my plan, then I have no need of her. Fetch Ranmaru: I have no desire to wait any longer."

"At once, my lord." Was the response.

Quick as a flash, the kneeling man turned and left the room. As he did, Morikiyo saw the arm that had been obscured from his previous position. What appeared to be a tattoo of a hooded serpent wrapped itself around the ninja's arm before moving out of sight.

Morikiyo felt the unease of his partner as he turned his attention back to Nobunaga. Though he knew the man had a powerful beast as a Lord, Morikiyo could see no evidence of it being in the room, meaning it must be dormant. Surely even a Lord could not muster enough power with a dormant beast to best a ninja? If he moved now, he might have a chance.

He pulled himself back up to the guts of the overhang, reaching out towards his partner. Once his hand reached its smooth skin, the amphibian disappeared, rejoining its Master as an image upon his skin. With his Toxicroak secured, the extra set of eyes no longer needed, he lowered himself further from the ceiling, dropping to the ground out of Nobunaga's sight. The lush carpet quieted what would have normally been too loud of a move to risk. The ninja kept to the wall, avoiding the ornamental orbs as he moved.

Luckily for him, Nobunaga seemed to be lost in thought. With precision born from years of practice, Morikiyo unsheathed one of his hidden kunai, preparing to strike.

Before he could move, the unease of his partner turned to dread. Morikiyo felt the hairs along his back stiffen, fear running through his veins. Not the fear of being seen, but the fear of a Bidoof as an Arbok hunts. Morikiyo froze, knowing he was at least somewhat hidden by the shifting orbs and dark tapestries.

His feelings of dread, constantly being pushed to him from his partner, did not fade, but he remained unable to tell why these feelings were appearing. With slight movements, he scanned the room. Besides Nobunaga, he could not sense anything. Then why?

The grip he had on his kunai tightened. No sense in wasting anymore time. With only the slightest mental nudge, he guided his partner to his weapon. The Toxicroak pooled its poison as it reached his hand, forcing it through his skin and down into his blade.

Now without reason to continue to wait, Morikiyo swiftly yet silently made his way over to the throne, ensuring he was out of Nobunaga's vision at all times. He slowed as he approached from the left, Nobunaga seemingly studying the tapestry closest to him on the other side.

Before Morikiyo could react, Nobunaga struck. With a quick snap of his fingers, holy thunder leapt from the metal of the throne towards the ninja. Morikiyo felt a tug at his bond, a signal his beast had left his skin without his permission. Before he could focus on such an odd action or react to the bolt of death flung his way, he felt the connection between himself and his Toxicroak snap like a brittle blade.

With a sharp and pain-filled cry, Morikiyo dropped his kunai to the ground, only to quickly follow it. Looking at his hand, he failed to see the image that was his partner. Carefully, as if fearful to confirm what he already knew, he lifted his head.

Before the throne laid his partner, skin smoking and trails of electricity still flowing across its surface. What was once a proud Toxicroak now was an empty husk, life forced from it in a painful and cruel way. Morikiyo felt his mind unravelling, the burden of his broken connection pulling at its fibers. Unable to keep his eyes on the body, Morikiyo forced his attention to the perpetrator, who still sat lazily upon his throne.

"You might have some information for me, hmm?" Asked the Lord, his face now covered in black, red eyes peering down at Morikiyo. Morikiyo could only stare, trying to piece his mind back together, as the black and red quickly disappeared from Nobunaga's face and formed a monster looming behind the throne, fangs and claws glistening in the low light of the room.

With another booming yet cruel laugh, Nobunaga stood.

"I suppose we shall see."

Fuuka glared into the glass that was her mirror. She silently poured her will, her desire, towards her partner, waiting for the Pokemon to give her what she wanted.

She could see her partner, the browns and cream that made up his dormant form racing from his favorite spot at the small of her back towards the top of her spine, running around her body in a circular pattern as if she was a spiral staircase. As he reached the back of her neck, his body disappeared for the final time, his tail still visible as it wiggled at her collarbone. She felt as her partner made the final stretch, the Eevee's ears meeting the base of hers.

No longer tracking his movement, Fuuka replaced her focus on her ears, waiting for something to happen. Slowly, she felt her sense expand, sound filling what should have been the quiet of her room.

Fuuka could hear snippets of conversation from the servants walking down the hall, ranging from Suki's desire for lunch to Chisai's rushed apologies to the head maid. Despite this jump in her hearing, Fuuka was still not satisfied. Her ears remained the light color of her skin rather than taking on the brown fur of her partner.

"Ugh, fine. Guess I'm not there yet." She sighed, her instructions to her partner slipping just as the sounds from beyond her room did as well. She felt the relief of her partner as he settled along the nape of her neck, stretching like the fox he is.

Fuuka stood as the Eevee's tail drooped over her shoulder, and moved to finish preparing for her day. After getting her garments situated, she placed her small headpiece from its place on her small table onto her head, forming two bronze ornaments that mimicked her partner's rather noticeable ears. She twirled once, admiring how her white coverings allowed visibility of the firm muscles of her arms and legs.

Finally ready to leave the comfort of her room, Fuuka opened her door and swiftly marched through the hallway, nodding at the maids as they bowed and wished her fortune in her day. Knowing exactly what would take her mind off of yet another failure, Fuuka made her way out of the western wing of the castle towards the training fields. As she expected, a single middle-aged man was located in its center, the movements of his body and blade a practiced dance. His armor glistened in the sunlight, as did his polished sword and helmet, reflecting light as his fluid movements continued to fill the clearing

Despite wanting to get started, Fuuka stood off to the side of the fields, allowing the man to finish his warmup. With one final kick that led into a downward slash, the man sheathed his sword and bowed towards his imagined opponent. His focus returned to him, he quickly recognized the women standing towards the edge of the clearing.

Eyes widening, the man dropped to his knees. "Lady Fuuka! Forgive me for not noticing your approach sooner!" the man begged, each word saturated with an odd mixture of respect and sarcasm.

"None of that, Takanobu." Fuuka responded as she approached her retainer, rolling her eyes at his overt display. "I was hoping to get in some training with my Eevee before Father needed me."

Quickly dropping his front of mockery, Takanobu bounced back up, eyes excited.

"Of course, Lady Fuuka. I'm guessing you did not have much luck with your Merging attempt this morning?"

"That is of little importance." Fuuka huffed. "Now, let's get started while I still have time."

With smirk, Takanobu retreated further down the fields. With a fluid motion, he waved his arm and a large, heavy Pokemon appeared on the field, less 'jumping' from its Master than 'flopping'. The Snorlax let loose a deep roar ("Or snore." thought Fuuka) as it left its dormant state, laying still on the wide field.

Deciding to go ahead and let her partner free, Fuuka pushed her thoughts toward her partner, letting him dart down her arm and leap from her fingers into the material world. As he landed, he fluffed out his fur, the volume of the cream ring around his neck increasing as air pushed the fur out..

"Vee!" the small fox declared, focusing its attention at the behemoth before it.

Takanobu walked out from behind his partner over to Fuuka's side, content to allow the Pokemon to do as it pleased to assist in the young Eevee's training.

"Do you have any desire to work on your own training as well?" the retainter asked, motioning to a rack of wooden weapons on the other edge of the clearing.

Fuuka responded with a glare. "What's the point of training if Eevee isn't dormant?"

Takanobu sighed, running a hand through his hair as he took off his helmet.

"I understand Lord Mitsumasa wishes for you to successfully Merge with your partner before your eighteenth nameday, but that is a poor excuse to neglect the other parts of your training. With all due respect, Lady Fuuka, you will not always be able to rely on your Link with your Eevee during a confrontation."

Fuuka sighed, lowering her head. She glanced over towards her partner, noting that his biting and tackling still had yet to get the Snorlax to move a muscle. As she watched, the Snorlax twitched in what was likely its sleep, causing her Eevee to yelp and retreat back, waiting for further movement. When it was obvious no other movement was going to occur, the Eevee continued its assault, to a lack of further response.

Turning back to her retainer, Fuuka took back her haughty air, stating "If you think it's of such import, then I suppose I can humor you."

With a smile and an "Of course, my lady", Takanobu walked over to the weapons rack, selecting a small wooden sword alongside two short sticks that appeared to represent daggers and set his helmet next to the still mostly full storage piece. He made his way back to Fuuka, lightly tossing the two sticks to her as he approached.

She deftly caught them, sinking into her stance as Takanobu took his own. With their current positions, Fuuka noted that Takanobu had purposefully kept her between himself and the edge of the clearing, robbing her of her mobility that made up the majority of her fighting style. She frowned at him, only for him to smirk back, showing that this definitely was not a mistake.

Much like her partner, Fuuka wasted no time in leaping into conflict. Though she was not wearing the training armor that she normally would be in this scenario, that simply meant her movements were unrestricted. With the fluidity of a striking feline, she brought her dominant arm up in a quick, striking move, attempting to catch Takanobu on his chin.

Unfortunately for her, Takanobu had expected such an opening, leaning his body back to allow the training weapon to whistle past his face. Turning on his feet, he turned the backwards momentum into a spin, swinging a powerful horizontal strike.

Fuuka dropped to the ground, allowing the strike to swing over her. With a dart, she stuck out towards her opponent's legs, swiping both of her 'blades' towards his shins.

The weapons connected with a crack, the sound running through the training ground. However, with his armor from his warm up still in protecting him, Takanobu simply responded to the blow with a kick, knocking one of the daggers from her grasp. Fuuka quickly jumped back, hissing as pain throbbed through her hand.

"If you weren't wearing armor, I'd have won this match already" Fuuka snarled.

Takanobu only grinned in response.

Now down a weapon and still lacking the space she really needed to take back the advantage, Fuuka resorted to focusing on evasion, dodging and redirecting the flurry of strikes Takanobu was sending her way. As she deflected a particularly fast hit that likely would have left her head ringing if it had connected, Fuuka glanced at her partner over Takanobu's shoulder. He had apparently given up getting Takanobu's Snorlax to move and had curled up to watch the duel between his Master and her retainer.

An idea creeping into her mind, Fuuka mentally felt for the Link between them, sending instructions to her resting ally. The Eevee perked up, ears twitching. She received feelings of doubt in response, but a fresh wave of instruction as she dodged yet another strike solidified it into action instead.

The Eevee darted across the field as Fuuka kept her opponent's attention on her. As he neared the dueling humans, Fuuka grinned at Takanobu and gestured with her head behind him. Eyes widening in realization, he turned, bringing up his arm to defend himself.

A movement that was slightly too late. The Eevee smashed into his face, latching his legs around his head as Fuuka dropped into a leg sweep. She hooked her powerful leg across Taknobu's heel, avoiding the sharp armor directly above it. Relieved of his balance, Takanobu fell hard onto his back, a gust of air leaving his lips into the Eevee's fur as it was expelled forcefully from his lungs by the hard ground.

Swift as a snake, Fuuka struck, moving her Eevee softly out of the way as she angled her remaining dagger to rest along Takanobu's neck. She applied plenty of weight with her legs and free arm on her target, preventing him from moving his weapon or his chest.

"Gotcha. Guess you shouldn't have taken off your helmet" she smirked, lightly tapping her wooden weapon on her fallen opponent's chin.

Glaring as he attempted to catch his breath, Takanobu tapped her arm with his unpinned hand., showing his surrender. With a chuckle at how annoyed he was at his loss, Fuuka relented, picking herself off Takanobu as she looked for her fallen weapon.

Twirling one of them as she pet her partner to allow him to reenter his dormant state, she glanced back at Takanobu, who had successfully found his way off the ground and over to his Snorlax. His stance was rigid as he recalled his partner, back straight as the Snorlax disappeared as quickly as it had appeared.

Fuuka followed him silently as they replaced their weapons, somewhat confused at just how mad her retainer was at her. Yeah she won, but isn't that the point of training? To beat your opponent?

The pair walked back over to the entrance to the clearing, the uncomfortable silence weighing heavy on Fuuka's shoulders. Takanobu resettled his helmet as they did so, the small noise necessary to replace it the only sound in the clearing. As they reached the exit, Fuuka began to speak only to be quickly cut off.

"While your performance was impressive," Takanobu began, turning back to his lady with an odd mix of pride, frustration, and disappointment in his eyes, "I believe you failed to understand the point of this training. As I said, relying too heavily on your Link could be the death of you. I know you have an extremely powerful Link for your age, but it cannot be the only thing you use to defend yourself."

Heat rising to her cheeks in anger, Fuuka began to snap back, only to once again be interrupted by her retainer.

"I advise you freshen up before the meeting, my lady. Rolling around in the dirt is all well and good, especially for combat training, but leaving the evidence on your wardrobe in the presence of guests is impolite."

Takanobu bowed low before turning back to the exit and making his leave. Fuuka fumed as he left, but did note that that her retainer was correct in the fact that her previously immaculate clothes were now covered in a layer of dirt and sweat. With a huff, she set out to her room, not noticing the auburn haired woman looking out over the training fields towards her from one of the castle's windows.